Trump says Japan and South Korea want to partner with the US in Alaska pipeline

SEOUL - Japan, South Korea and other countries want to partner with the United States in a “gigantic” natural gas pipeline in Alaska, US President Donald Trump said on March 4, claiming they would invest “trillions of dollars each”.

Mr Trump said in an address to the US Congress that the pipeline would be one of the largest in the world.

“Japan, South Korea and other nations want to be our partner, with investments of trillions of dollars each,” he said.

South Korea’s industry ministry said Minister Ahn Duk-geun discussed the project with US officials during his visit to Washington last week but no specific details have been decided.

“We will actively engage in discussions with the United States moving forward as it is a matter of mutual interest of the two countries,” the spokesperson told Reuters after Trump’s remarks.

Earlier on March 4, Mr Ahn said the United States had asked South Korea and other countries if they are interested in participating in the Alaskan liquefied natural gas project.

He said Seoul and Washington had agreed to establish a working-level group to discuss the pipeline, energy, shipbuilding, tariffs and non-tariff barriers.

Mr Anh’s comments came after he travelled to Washington in February seeking exemptions from Trump administration tariffs that are expected to hit South Korea’s export-reliant economy hard.

During the trip Mr Ahn indicated South Korean interest in joining the US$44 billion (S$59 billion) Alaska gas project in partnership with the US and Japan, Yonhap News Agency reported.

In the address to Congress, Mr Trump highlighted his tariff plans and said it was now the turn of the United States to use tariffs against other countries as they had against the US. He said he would impose reciprocal tariffs on April 2.

He said South Korea’s average tariff was four times higher than that of the US, despite all the military and other assistance the United States provided to the country.

On March 2, the co-chair of the White House National Energy Dominance Council Doug Burgum said the 800-mile LNG gas pipeline would allow the United States to sell energy to its allies and “raise money for the US Treasury”.

While the Alaska LNG proposal faces cost and logistical hurdles, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and others are buying into the idea of increasing US gas imports more broadly.

Japanese officials have not said they have agreed to participate in the pipeline but have agreed to look into the matter, according to people familiar with the conversations.

Japan’s trade minister plans to visit Washington later in March to seek exemptions from Mr Trump’s tariffs and discuss Japan’s plans to buy more US LNG. REUTERS